Maid Marian HE 822

To understand the early history of Maid Marian, you need to understand how the locomotives first home operated. In 1903 locomotive 822 left the Hunslet Engineering locomotive works near Leeds. It was built as an "Alice class" 0-4-0 Saddle Tank (ST) with a domed boiler and all the components were stamped in the works with the number 822, as was Hunslet standard practice.

Delivered as No. 5

The loco was delivered to the Assheton-Smith family owned Dinorwic Slate Quarry, Llanberis North Wales where it was named "No.5"'.

No.5 was put to work on the Dinorwic village line, which was also known as the Allt Ddu Tramroad, until 1928 when she was replaced by another Hunslet 0-4-0 "Lady Madcap".

Rebirth as Maid Marian

In 1911 Charles Assheton-Smith was created a baronet and soon after the locomotives of the quarry were renamed after winning racehorses he owned with 'No.5' becoming 'Maid Marian'.

The quarry was a major industrial concern and had extensive engineering works, which undertook major rebuilds of their locomotives. The majority of the steam locomotives used in the quarry were of very similar types and from the same manufacturer parts could be interchanged, "to keep things moving". The faulty part would go off to the works to be repaired or overhauled, then placed into "stock" to await the next locomotive needing repair.

Because of this "change and repair" process, the frames and many of the number-stamped parts of the original Hunslet locomotive 822 of 1903 are actually at the back of a barn in Canada!

Somewhere in the early 1930s came the complicated series of rebuilds and swaps that finished up with the present day 'Maid Marian' having a domeless boiler. The saddle tank, with its attached nameplates, was then placed on the completed loco after the rebuilding had taken place, resulting in the confusion that has existed for the last 40 plus years.

This boiler was replaced in the early 1950s and remained with the loco until 2004.

Into Preservation

By 1964, Maid Marian was stranded on Pen Garret Level by an immense rock fall that cut the main face of the Quarry in two. It was at this time that the quarry had decided to switch to diesel traction or use motor transport and dispose of the steam locomotives.

Founder members of the Maid Marian Locomotive Fund visited the Quarry after making preliminary enquiries and were informed by Tommy Morris, the then Engineer, that Maid Marian was the best of the existing locomotives on sale. A deal was done and the MMLF became the locomotives owner in 1965 although they did not take possession until 1967. 

Maid Marian‘s first photo opportunity under the new future management took place after being winched out of the shed into the sunlight after many years in the dark; an oily rag was produced to shine up the sides of the tank and cab nearest to the cameras!

The Quarry brought down the loco from Pen Garret and the "Maid" was overhauled and repainted in the purchase price.

The hand-over ceremony took place in Llanberis in 1967, with Maid Marian heading a train of wagons and yellow coaches the length of the Peris-Padarn tramway.

From Slate to Flowers

Shortly afterwards the MMLF moved the loco to the Bressingham Steam Museum in Norfolk, having briefly toyed with the idea of taking over the railway that ran up the side of Longdendale reservoirs. This would have been a local venue for the founder members, all of whom at that time lived in the Manchester area, but external advice given to the Fund indicated that owning a locomotive was one thing, but running a railway was quite a different matter!

From 1967 to 1971, Maid Marian ran around the Bressingham Gardens and provided the Fund‘s members with the experience of driving the loco on a passenger train, but the journey between Manchester and Norfolk was not an easy one on a regular basis.

Return to Llanberis

An opportunity of returning the loco to North Wales was too good to be missed as the Llanberis Lake Railway was being opened in 1970, following the final closure of the Quarry and the sale of the remaining locos and parts.

Arrangements were made to return the "Maid" home to Llanberis for use on the line, though before this could happen a number of modifications were needed. Many of these were carried out by the Fund members, the most obvious being the fitting of a cab, but although the loco was cleared for use on the line, very few passenger trains were run. The Railway had 3 of its own locos from the Quarry so there was little need for the additional loco.

Forward to Bala

Maid Marian was finally moved to her present home in Llanuwchllyn, on the far end of Bala Lake from Bala itself, in 1975. At last the steam engine without a railway was united with a railway without a steam engine, as the Bala Lake Railway (BLR) did not have any steam locos at the time.

The arrangement seemed to suit all parties admirably and since then she has shared the locomotive roster with Holy War, another Hunslet loco from the same Quarry, and has been an integral part of the Llanuwchllyn scene.

The original agreement with the Railway was on an annual basis for a number of years, as had been the practice with the Bressingham and Llanberis operations. However, after a period of internal debate about the future of the Fund and the long-term placement of the loco, the Trustees opened the Fund up for new subscribers and negotiated a new 10-year agreement with the Company. This gave greater stability to both parties and is due to be re-negotiated in the near future so the MMLF is looking forward to the next century of operation from Llanuwchllyn.

Source: Maid Marian Locomotive Fund